Domestic Partnerships and Same-Sex Marriage

UPDATE:

Since the June 26, 2013 U.S. Supreme Court Defense of
Marriage Act rulings, gay and lesbian couples are able to marry in many states.
In addition, their marriages are treated as valid for federal law purposes. Some
of the effects of treating same sex marriages the same as heterosexual
marriages for federal purposes under the U.S. vs. Windsor decision are:

* A same-sex spouse
can request a green card for his or her immigrant spouse.

* Same-sex couples
can file joint tax returns. They can
also amend their 2010 and 2011 returns to file jointly.

* Medical benefits
for a same-sex spouse are not taxed as income. (Previously they were, and they
still are for domestic partners.)

* A same-sex spouse is
eligible to include his or her spouse in a family flexible spending account if the
spouse is otherwise eligible.

* Inheritances from a
same-sex spouse are exempt from federal Inheritance Tax.

* Same-sex spouses are
eligible for benefits under the Family Medical Leave Act and federal COBRA
rules.

* Same-sex spouses
are entitled to Social Security benefits based on the spouse’s earnings record
if otherwise eligible.

* Military same-sex
spouses are eligible for military health and retirement benefits.

If the marriage ceremony occurred in a place where the
marriage was legal, but the couple now lives in a state where gay marriage is
not recognized, the couple is still eligible for federal benefits.

The separate Hollingsworth v. Perry case that was
also decided on June 26, 2013 makes it possible for same-sex couples to marry
again in California,
as they had not been able to do since November 2008. Other states have been
using the two decisions as precedents to legalize or recognize gay marriages in
their states. For current information about the status of gay marriage in the
various states see: http://www.nclrights.org/explore-the-issues/family-relationships/marriage/.

State laws still determine whether a same-sex marriage is
recognized in that state for state purposes. State laws determine the right to
marry itself, inheritance from a same-sex spouse, whether state tax filings can
be joint, and other rights, such as hospital visitation.

The right to use the family court to become divorced is
another right determined by the states. If a couple married in a state where
divorce was legal, but moves to a state where it is not, it can be difficult to
divorce. Some states, such as California, have
an exception to the normal residence requirement for divorces so that couples
that married in California
can be divorced there even if they don’t live there at the time of the divorce.

Click here for more in an article written by Sally Cooperrider: weLife Story